


Never Them

by SpencnerTibbsLuvr (KliqzAngel)



Series: Never Them Always Us [2]
Category: NCIS
Genre: A Softer Gibbs, Anti-Abby, Anti-McGee, Anti-Ziva, Character Bashing, M/M, Season 7 NCIS, Vance is on Tony's Side
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-01
Updated: 2018-07-01
Packaged: 2019-05-31 14:29:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 13,166
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15121424
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KliqzAngel/pseuds/SpencnerTibbsLuvr
Summary: Gibbs hadn't wanted to believe that things were really as bad as Tony said. So, he took a few days to try and look at things from a new perspective. Gibbs knew that one way or another the Marine had to fix things because he couldn't lose Tony, and wanted time to come up with a plan. In a way he was right, things weren't as bad as his partner in life, and everything else said. Unfortunately, they just might be worse, and when Gibbs got done kicking asses, Tony might be the only person left.





	1. Chapter One: It’s Really as Bad as It Sounds

**Author's Note:**

> I honestly never imagined a sequel to the original fic. It was supposed to be a short little thing to jumpstart the musi. However I got an idea for a sequel sometime after I posted it, and I've been slowly picking at it ever since. July RT starts tomorrow, and I wanted to get this posted beforehand. 
> 
> Danny James from Bull is being used because she's kickass. No knowledge of Bull is needed and I am not connecting the two shows. 
> 
> Thanks for this getting completed can go to Rivermoon1970. I let her pick something for me to work on and this was her choice.

# Chapter One: It’s Really as Bad as It Sounds

 

 

Gibbs sat at his desk staring at his screen not seeing the end of the month Case Closure Report in front of him. Instead, he was focused on listening to the two Junior Agents give Tony a rough time about the case reports he was demanding that they finish. Gibbs knew that the SFA was waiting on them so that Tony could finish his own reports, which were needed for Gibbs to complete the report he was currently working on. It’d been a couple days since he and Tony had their talk, and he made sure to pay more attention to what was going on. The fact that the two knuckleheads were so blatantly insubordinate while their Team Leader was right there was a big blinking neon sign warning him how bad things really were. It just made everything worse, now that he was aware there was a problem, to hear exactly what Tony was upset about.

He didn’t know why Tony was even still with him let alone still at NCIS if this is what he’d been dealing with on a daily basis. “Enough!” Gibbs hollered pounding a fist on his desk as he turned his gaze toward the fiasco unfolding at Tony’s desk. The fact that neither Tim nor Ziva looked even a little bit worried and instead turned to gleefully smirk at Tony made him growl. Just how far had he allowed his head to be lodged up his own ass?

“Special Agent McGee,” Gibbs growled standing and moving to stand in the aisle between the desks, “did you sleep through the day they went over the chain of command at FLETC?”

“B…Boss?” McGee stuttered. His shock at being the one called out was apparent.

“Do you not understand English, Special Agent McGee? What about you, Probationary Agent David? They forget to train you in the chain of command at Mossad? With how you’ve been runnin’ your mouth about them over the years, I’d have expected you knew that a Probationary Agent is beneath a Senior Field Agent.”

When McGee just gaped at him, and Ziva stared at him as if she was sucking on a lemon, his frustrations grew even higher. “Speak!”

“Tony is not my superior, and I do not recognize his right to order me around,” Ziva spat lifting her chin in the air as if that would make him see her way, and Gibbs literally growled. He wanted to march over and throw her into the damned elevator with a one-way pass out of NCIS. Gibbs couldn’t believe that this bullshit had gotten so bad and he hadn’t had a single clue. He knew that she was counting on Ari’s death to make him see her way, but Israel should have nipped that bullshit in the bud. Evidently, he was wrong.

“I don’t recall anyone giving two shits what you recognize,” Gibbs spat back and was about to proceed when a voice came from above.

“Special Agent Gibbs, could you come to my office, please?”

Gibbs looked up and glared just barely holding back words that would get him reprimanded. When he turned his attention back to Ziva, he could see her gleeful smirk and knew she believed that the Director was calling him to heel. Her expression changed, however, when Vance continued.

“Special Agent DiNozzo, I would appreciate if you can fill out a verbal warning reprimand for both Agents McGee and David for insubordination. It sounds like they both have plenty to do to keep them occupied until I get done with Gibbs. Then, I need to see Probationary Agent David in my office. Gibbs?” Vance turned and walked back without waiting for anyone to respond.

Ziva was staring up at the upper walkway with apparent disbelief as Gibbs headed toward the stairs. “DiNozzo, if they give you any further hassle you can add Written Reprimands to those Verbal Reprimand forms too. McGee and David, I expect whatever reports Tony’s been ordering you to finish to be completed and on my desk when I return. If they aren’t, you can expect another write up. This bullshit stops now.”

Gibbs heard Ziva’s curse in Hebrew, and before he could comment, heard Tony’s return reprimand also in Hebrew. Smirking, he left things in the capable hands of his SFA and Life Partner as he headed down the walkway and toward Vance’s office. Nodding to Cynthia as he walked past her desk, Gibbs headed in and took a seat in front of the Director’s desk waiting for the other man to speak.

When the younger man just shoved a toothpick in his mouth, Gibbs lifted an eyebrow and took a drink of his coffee. He wasn’t the one to call this meeting, and he was more than happy to sit there for once and wait for the other man to get to the point. It better damned well be what the Marine wanted to hear once he did so, too. Otherwise, he’d be more than happy to go straight to SecDef. He wasn’t even messing around with Jarvis, whose ethics and loyalty he already questioned. The man seemed more bureaucrat than Military Leader. It was why he hated when people were appointed to SecNav that didn’t have Military leadership experience.

“I hate you,” Vance gripped, and Gibbs almost snorted coffee out his nose. Quirking an eyebrow at the man, he didn’t even bother trying to hide his amusement. They had both done an excellent job of screwing the pooch on this situation. He might have had his hands in the pot, but he certainly wasn’t the only one and was not going to take the blame for it all. “I did a thorough review of DiNozzo’s complete file, not just the edited and condensed version that I had reviewed previously. I also took your advice and called Morrow, who was happy to chew my ass from one end of the East Coast to the other and back. I then called Retired Admiral Chegwidden and Commander Rabb the former and current heads of JAG and got my ass reamed by them both as well. I didn't appreciate being called out like that, even if it was my own damn fault.”

“If you’re expectin’ sympathy from me, Leon, then you’re gonna be waitin’ a long-damned time,” Gibbs gruffed before taking a sip of his coffee.

Leon rolled his eyes as he took out the toothpick and tossed it into a nearby trashcan.  “Between that and the things that I have overheard recently, combined with input that I got from the other team leaders, it’s apparent that we need to make some changes. Ziva is going to be given the choices between being moved to one of our Counter Intelligence Teams and put under heavy monitoring, or taking a spot with the CIA. I doubt very much that she will take the second option. Eli and CIA Director Marshall detest each other, and

I am fairly certain that DiNozzo is right and there’s something hinky going on between her and her father. I have a review of her computer history going right now. If they find she’s accessed something that she didn’t need to for one of your cases, then she’s going to be arrested.”

“Doubt that she’s that stupid,” Gibbs drawled easily as he frowned thinking about the whole Ziva mess. “I agree with Tony that she’s up to something though. Just don’t know what it is. What are you going to do with McGee?”

“I have no clue,” Leon admitted running a hand over his forehead before settling back into his chair more comfortably. When he smirked suddenly, Gibbs tilted his head to one side in silent question, which Vance readily explained. “It seems that your boy really has gotten fed up. When the grumbling didn’t stop when you left, he assigned some creative, busy work for McGee and Ziva to do once they’re done with those reports. McGee is to be working on a report about the requirements for the SFA position and then comparing his qualifications to Tony’s. Ziva has to submit a report on her official job duties and the areas that she is lacking in. He also told them he’s monitoring their NCIS Messenger communication and they aren’t allowed to use it for personal chatter.”

Gibbs snorted before hiding his smile behind his coffee cup as he took a drink. He made a mental note to back up Tony’s orders when he went down. They were both creative solutions that Gibbs hoped would help at least McGee pull his head out of his ass. When Vance started back in on their conversation, the Supervisory Agent pulled turned his thoughts back to the present meeting.

“I find McGee a complete disappointment. I’d like to think that he’ll shape up once Eli’s little girl is gone, but then I thought he was smarter than to let his ego override his common sense. Since I’ve been told numerous times now that DiNozzo is the one I should really be eyeing to take my spot someday, what’s his opinion on McGee?”

“Tony would like a chance to get McGee’s head back on straight but thinks it’s gonna take something big to extract his head from his ass before that can happen. He also is of the opinion that it would be impossible with Ziva there and equally impossible until Abby is brought around as well. Tony questions whether moving her to CI is a good idea given she’s already passed info before. He pointed out to me that their cases and information are probably even more sensitive than ours.”

“Abby is not my damned fault,” Leon shot back pointing a finger at Gibbs. “That one is all on you. Tony has a point about Ziva, damnit. He have an opinion on what to do with her, then? If she isn’t passing information to

Eli that we can prove, then the agreement that she signed said we’d take her back.”

“Yeah,” Gibbs admitted knowing that he was right and already having admitted such to his partner. “I don’t know what I’m gonna do about Abby, to be honest, but I told Tony that I would do it. He pointed out that it won’t work coming from anyone else. He thinks that I need to encourage her to take one of those offers she gets all the time.”

Shaking his head, Gibbs forced away his melancholy at the thought remembering what Dr. Harold told him about Abby. The day after their argument, Gibbs made an appointment with Dr. he trusted to help him get himself straightened out. He couldn’t risk losing Tony, and his partner was right. There wasn’t room in their relationship for Tony and his grief too.

“Tony did some checking with Legal, and one of his contacts at the State Department, and both said that her agreement did not specify NCIS. It just said that we had to give her a spot with a Federal Intelligence Agency. I’m pretty sure that he’s already talked to Tom, too. The two of them are pretty close. Morrow thought a lot of Tony and would love to have him at Homeland. I say don’t give her an option to stay here. Tell her that the MCRT is being restructured and refocused. We’ve been getting into too many terrorism cases lately that should be going to CI or Counter Terrorism. I ain’t saying that I don’t wanna do those, ‘cause I don’t mind. I just think, and Tony agrees, that it isn’t what the MCRT was created for. She has never fit on a purely investigative team, and she won’t now if we realign our cases back to what we’re supposed to be getting. Tell her it’s Homeland or the CIA or she can head back to daddy.”

“Tom’ll chew her up and spit her out the first time she mentions how much better Mossad is or what an idiot Tony is,” Leon chuckled. “I really like that idea. So, I’m gonna take it, and to take pressure off you and Tony I’m going to present it as my idea. I don’t need her coming after either of you. The cover story will actually work well with my plans for the team. I want to promote Tony to a Lead Agent position and make the two of you Co-Leaders of the team. How you distribute responsibilities will be up to you. You’ll then get a new SFA, one new veteran agent, and one rookie. I’ll let you two pick the new agents, but I want at least one of those people to be chosen purely by Tony. I’d like to see what kind of agent he thinks that we need.”

Gibbs cocked his head to one side as he thought about the offer. “I’ll do you one better. I already know who I want for the rookie. I just have to pry her away from the NSA. I’ll let Tony pick the SFA and the veteran agent. The team’ll be mostly his picks then. He’s the one who wanted McGee. Did you know that? If I had my way, he’d a never come from Norfolk. He was a green stuttering mess, and I couldn’t understand half the shit that came outta his mouth.”

“I didn’t know that,” Vance murmured absently as he considered the new information. “I assumed that you asked for McGee. Does Tim know that he is where he is because of Tony? If not, you might consider filling him in on it.”

“Nope,” Gibbs said then paused to consider it before shrugging. “Least I don’t think he does. That’s a good idea though. Maybe I’ll have a little chat with him while you’re giving Ziva her walking papers. Balboa has been asking me to lend him Tony for a couple days to help with a cold case. I’ll send him over there to get him out of Ziva’s path after you’re done with her. Plus, I know that he’ll watch his back if she goes looking for him.”

“That’s a good idea. Just don’t have this talk in the elevator, Gibbs.” Leon glared at his Senior Lead Agent who didn’t look even the least bit repentant about always tying it up. “We have conference rooms for such things.  I will leave Abby to you for the moment. If she doesn’t change some things though I am going to have to have a talk with her, and I won’t be nice about it like you will.”

“Maybe it’s time that I’m not nice about it either,” Gibbs acknowledged before standing sensing the meeting had come to an end. “You gonna tell Tony about the changes, or am I?”

“I’ll let you tell him first, and I’ll have a formal meeting with him tomorrow or after he’s done helping Balboa,” Leon informed as he turned his attention to some folders on his desk. “I don’t want to pull him off of the case if he manages to get something out of it. I am pretty sure that I know what case it is, and it would mean a lot to Ron if they could get it closed.

“I have a couple things I want to do before my meeting with Ziva. So, I’ll send you a message when I’m ready for her. Once she comes up, you can put the fear of you into McGee, Gibbs, and sent Ziva up to me for a reality check. Shit’s about to change around here even if I gotta shove my shoe up some people’s asses.”

After throwing Vance a nod and a smirk, Gibbs turned and headed out. Vance was right. It was time that Tim’s feet met the ground again.

 

 

~*~~*~ ~*~~*~ ~*~~*~

 

Tony decided that he wasn’t going to even try to hold in his smirk of pleasure at the frustrated growl his reprimand in Hebrew drew from her. He wasn’t going to let her insult him any longer though, even if it was in a language that she thought he couldn’t understand. The SFA hadn’t said anything before now because Tony hadn’t wanted to lose his strategic advantage. Thus far though, he hadn’t learned anything significant and didn’t want to give her any more avenues for insubordination.

“I suggest you both finish up those reports. Then, when you’re done with those, you can start on a cold case.”

“Nice try, Tony,” McGee threw back with an eye roll that Tony totally saw. “Gibbs didn’t say anything about you being allowed to give us more work to do. I don’t know what’s going on, but don’t get a big head. You’re not any better than the rest of us.”

Turning his body toward Tim, Tony glared at the Junior Agent who was staring at him stubbornly and seemed determined to hold onto his mistaken belief that Tony had no power over him. Tired of being nice about the whole thing, the Senior Field Agent decided to just be frank and not worry about hurt feelings. “You know, McGee, for someone who likes to remind all of us constantly how smart he is, you sure are stupid.”

Standing from his chair, Tony glowered at the younger man, and when he went to talk, the SFA held up a hand. “If you make one more crappy comment, Special Agent McGee, I will add a Written Warning to the list. This whole schtick where you get to do whatever you want with no consequences is over. I get that Gibbs let it go on up until now, but he isn’t any longer. It’s time that you became a real agent, McGee. You know what, forget the cold case files, I want a report submitted to me by the end of the day on the requirements for becoming a Senior Field Agent and what the job duties entail. Then, I want you to look at my agency profile and compare how I qualify for the position versus how you don’t qualify. I expect both reports done before you leave for the day.”

Turning around, he headed to stand in front of Ziva’s desk who was growling at him softly. “That ends, right now. I am not putting up with your issues. I’ve been relatively sympathetic up to this point, but my give a fucks are gone. Your report better not have one word of Hebrew in it. If it does, it's coming back to you. I won’t be correcting your reports any longer. In fact, when you’re done submit it directly to Gibbs. As far as I am concerned, he can deal with the mess you call reports.

“When you’re done with that, I want a report on the official job duties and requirements for your current position. Then, I want you to list all of the things you are deficient in. If there is one single reference to Mossad or you are not completely honest in the areas you are lacking in, it’s getting rejected, and you’re getting a Written Warning. Just so we’re clear, you are a Probationary Agent. I no longer care about how rough you may have had it while you were gone, or even before you joined NCIS originally. That’s your mess to deal with. You’ve worn out any sympathy I had for you with your bullshit comments. Frankly speaking, you are in no way qualified for your current position, and only have it because the current and former Director was friends with your father. Instead of being grateful for the opportunity you’ve been given though, you decided to be a hateful, arrogant, bitch. Your reports are also due before you leave for the day, or you will receive a Written Warning.”

Moving back to his desk, Tony looked first at Ziva and then Tim before sitting down. “And just to be clear, I can and will be monitoring your communication via NCIS Messenger. Any bullshit there will be treated as if it was said verbally. That is an agency owned communication system, and you have no rights to privacy while using it. If you are not using it to discuss a case, then you don’t need to be using it. You’ve proven that you don’t deserve the privilege of using it to chat on personal topics. Now, get to work. You both have plenty to do.”

When he got nothing but silence, Tony opened the monitoring portion of his Messenger program, and then turned his attention back to his own busy work. He’d much rather be working on his school things, but he was on company time. If Gibbs was around, he might have asked for permission, but since he wasn’t, Tony decided to start on his next month’s reports early.

Caught up on his various tasks, Tony didn’t notice Gibbs storm back into the area. “McGee and Ziva, are you done with your reports yet? You better have them submitted and be workin’ on those reports Tony assigned you. McGee, I want yours submitted to me as well as Tony when you’re done. You better hope we’re both satisfied with your work.”

Tony lifted his head in time to see Ziva stand up with an outraged expression on her face. “Surely you are not supporting this child’s work, Gibbs! We are Federal Agents. We should not have to do the task of a school child.”

Tony watched amused as Gibbs marched over to her glaring at her fiercely. “Busy work or child’s play, Ziva, You and I both know you butcher that shit on purpose. It stops now. If you don’t wanna be treated like a child, then don’t act like one. Team’s off rotation for a while. Tony, Balboa needs your help on a case. So, you’re gonna be workin’ with him for a little while. I’m gonna make sure he knows you may need time to finish up your thesis work or meet with your advisor. When’re you scheduled to argue that again? I know you told me, but I keep forgettin’. Gonna put it on my calendar this time.”

“Ah, the 23rd,” Tony murmured as he tried to figure out what was going on. It was obvious, at least to him, that he was being gotten out of the way. He just didn’t know why. “I have a meeting tomorrow with Dr. Reid that I can’t get out of. I put it on your calendar this morning. He’s across the campus here though since he works for the BAU. So, I’ll just ask him if we can meet here or there instead of at campus. I sent you an email on the reports that I assigned to both Ziva and McGee. Ziva was ordered to submit her case report directly to you, as well. McGee’s is finished, and I have signed off on it.”

“Tony is doing thesis work?” McGee interrupted incredulously, “on what?”

“Abnormal Behavioral Psychology,” Gibbs growled as Tony watch him stalk over to loom over McGee from the other side of the younger man’s desk. “One of the profilers on the BAU team is personally acting as his advisor. Told him that he didn’t usually get involved in such things because he didn’t have time, but that for Tony he’d make it. Said he was that excited to see Tony’s thesis. You got a problem with that, Junior Agent McGee?”

“I… I… I…” McGee stuttered looking frantically between Gibbs and Tony. Eventually, Tony just snorted and cleared off his desk. He wasn’t sure how he felt about his school work being broadcast to the floor, but it wasn’t like he was ashamed of it.

“I’d finish that report I assigned you, McNotAsSmartAsHeThinks,” Tony threw out as he stood with his backpack over one shoulder, and his personal computer bag over the other. “I think you’re gonna find out that you’re not as qualified as you think you are for my position. I’m off, Boss. If you need me, you know where I’ll be.”

Knowing that his lover would fill him in on whatever was going on, Tony headed toward the staircase down to the cold case room on the floor just above Abby’s lab. While he was incredibly curious about what was happening, he could see that things were changing, and still had enough faith in his partner that Tony knew he’d get his answers in due time. At the moment, he had a cold case riddle to solve and would give Balboa his full attention.


	2. Ziva David, Let’s Make a Deal!

# Chapter Two: Ziva David, Let’s Make a Deal!

 

 

After Gibbs left his office, Leon decided to confirm the information that he’d been given and made a series of calls that included the State Department, NCIS Legal Department, Director Marshall at the CIA and Director Morrow at Homeland. He wanted to confirm that not only did he not have to keep Ziva at NCIS, but also that he could move on from her at any time as long as someone else was willing to take her. He then confirmed that both Director Marshall and Director Morrow welcomed her with their agencies. In fact, both were almost gleeful to have her with them, but Gibbs was right in that it seemed to be for different reasons.

Director Marshall could not wait to have Eli David’s baby girl on his payroll and seemed very enthusiastic at the very idea. Almost uncomfortably so in Leon’s opinion, and was somewhat glad that he had another option for her. However, if she was dumb enough to take a spot with a man whom her father considered an enemy, then that was her problem. If she chose the CIA, Leon would talk to Hanna and Callen out at the Los Angeles OSP and see if they had any contacts left at the CIA that could watch out for her. He expected though that she’d see Homeland as the better situation and the one she could most easily manipulate.

Little did she know that Morrow was a lot of things, but easily manipulated was not one of them. The man was as hard-nosed as they came and took pride in being underestimated. He knew that he was viewed as standing in the shadows of men like Marshall and Director Skinner over at the FBI, who was a cousin to Retired Admiral Chegwidden over at JAG and didn’t mind in the least. Morrow took great pride in being seen as an underdog by those that didn’t really understand how DC worked and that Tom was feared behind closed doors where the truth was more apt to come out. Morrow also made damned sure that no one ever knew who his favorites were. So, Eli’s daughter would have no idea the shit storm she would be stepping into by going to Homeland.

To say that Morrow was displeased with the way that Ziva viewed Tony and how she treated him was an understatement. The man hadn’t gone to the lengths he did to make sure that no one could ever penalize Gibbs or DiNozzo for their relationship for Gibbs’ sake. No, that was all Tony. The former Director held a soft spot in his steel lined soul for the man who had, in Tom’s words, come in and tamed the beast that was Leroy Jethro Gibbs. The fact that the Assistant Director at Homeland wasn’t at NCIS anymore wouldn’t help her in the least. Tom Morrow was one of those political powers who always knew what was going on everywhere, but especially at NCIS, and specifically with his favorite agent.

Needless to say, Tom was looking forward to getting his hands on Ziva, and then the Homeland Assistant Director would make sure that David had absolutely no other options of escape. Once she signed her paperwork for Homeland, all of her other avenues of employment would mysteriously dry up. Ziva would find herself under the sharp eye of a man who was not going to be fooled by her and would make sure the former Mossad agent did things his way. If he was able, at the same time, to find a way for her to pay for her many, many transgressions since she’d conned her way into NCIS… Well, that would be even better. As it was, her time at NCIS had come to a close, and frankly, Leon couldn’t wait to be rid of her. If Eli didn’t like it, Vance just couldn’t give two shits any longer. He was about done with Eli David and his bullshit, as well.

They’d been friends for quite some time, but Jackie frequently asked what Vance was getting out of their friendship. Leon knew it was time that he took his wife’s question seriously. It had been with great chagrin that Vance realized how one-sided his supposed friendship with the Mossad Director actually was. One of the calls he’d made was to SecDef. He’d probably pay for bypassing SecNav, but he knew Jarvis was more political than any of them liked, and he wanted to make sure that he had support from someone who really understood what was about to happen.

Fortunately, O’Neill, like Morrow, had people everywhere and was more than happy to hear that Ziva David would be moving out of NCIS. The older man had been quite happy to give his support for the move and advised Vance not to worry about SecNav, saying that he’d take care of it himself. That was music to Vance’s ears, and he was now waiting for Ziva to arrive in his office. Shortly after Gibbs left his office, Leon got an email from the MCRT Leader advising of the reports that Tony assigned to Ziva and McGee. He’d also expressed his opinion that maybe they should wait for Ziva to finish her assignment before she have her meeting with the Director.

Given that at the time he’d decided to make more calls, Leon had been happy to agree. The two of them decided that the end of the workday was a much better time for the confrontation. It would not only give the Director time to prepare, but it would give Tony time to be safely ensconced with Balboa, or at home. An hour previously, Leon got a message from Balboa that he’d sent Tony home, and before he’d left the Cold Case Team Leader informed the MCRT SFA what was going to go down. Showing his awareness of the realities of his teammates, Tony decided to take up the dinner invitation that he’d received from his mentor and the BAU Unit Chief who was also Dr. Reid’s boss.

Knowing what a crack shot Unit Chief Hotchner was, Leon felt much better about his agent’s safety, because there was no way Ziva wasn’t going to be out looking for blood. Fortunately, both he and Director’s Morrow and Marshall were aware of this. Leon had ordered a couple extra security officers to be on standby for the meeting should things get out of hand there at the Navy Yard. In addition to that, Marshall had sent over Trent Kort, and Morrow had come personally with his own security detail. Technically, Ziva had a third option, which was to give up her citizenship and position with NCIS and go back to Mossad and Israel. Leon thought this was the least likely option for her to pick, but should she take that route, Morrow had volunteered to see her to the airport with his security detail.

Once Gibbs advised that Ziva was on her way up, Leon placed a secure call to Eli, to inform him of what was going on. The conversation got quite heated, but the NCIS Director stood firm in his decision. He’d actually been quite frank with the Mossad Director about his thoughts on Eli’s handling of not only his daughter but his business dealings and their friendship. In the end, Vance made it quite clear that Ziva had three options of which she would make on her own without her father’s input, and that Leon was more than ok with the end of his friendship with his agent’s father.

Once he was done with the call, his door immediately opened, and Ziva stormed in, stopping short when she saw that she was not alone with the Director. One of Morrow’s security detail members had been stations by the door and made sure it was shut quickly, and Leon engaged the room’s lockdown protocols. This way they could have their meeting without Eli calling to interfere. “What is going on, Leon?” Ziva demanded angrily, but Leon knew he had all the cards, and just motioned toward the conference table in his office where Morrow and Kort were already sitting.

“Have a seat, Special Agent David,” Leon ordered as he stood and made his way to the table sitting at the head between the two guests from outside the agency.

“I demand,” Ziva started only to be interrupted. Director Vance had no interest in indulging her temper tantrums.

“That’s an order, David,” Vance growled, “I’m not really concerned with your demands.”

Vance was almost amused as the agent flopped angrily into a chair and fought the urge to roll his eyes. His two children hadn’t acted so immature since they were toddlers. He couldn’t wait to be rid of this headache and couldn’t figure out why he hadn’t seen the problems earlier.

“You know Agent Kort,” Leon stated starting his introductions, “but I don’t think you know Director Morrow.”

“He is the Assistant Director over at Homeland. I have asked them both here for the meeting. I have come to the realization that having you at NCIS is not working. Your attitude is affecting not just your team, but the teams around you. I literally get complaints weekly about your interactions with others inside and outside of this building. Despite how long you’ve been with us, you still refuse to follow the laws of this country and are determined to throw in everyone’s faces how things work at Mossad. You have no respect for the chain of command and have caused problems with cases in court due to either your belligerent testimony or something you screwed up while investigating.”

When Ziva started to interrupt, Leon just glared her into silence. “When I want you to speak, I will let you know. Once I decided that things were not going to work out for you at NCIS, I consulted with not only our Legal Department, but the State Department about your position with us, and found that the agreement was only that you would have a spot with a Federal Agency. It does not state specifically that we have to provide you a spot with this one. As long as another agency is willing to take you in, we can move on from your services. So, this afternoon I made some calls, and the Directors at both the CIA and Homeland have advised they are willing to take you in.”

“My father will not stand for this,” Ziva hissed angrily, and Leon just snorted.

“Your father has no say in the situation. I have already discussed things with him and informed him that I am more than ok with our friendship ending. I’ve recently come to understand how one-sided it is, and I think its time that NCIS does not have such close ties to a foreign intelligence agency. I will admit he wasn’t happy, but SecDef is aware of the possibility and advised me that both he and the president support the move.

“So, you have two options, you can choose a position at the CIA or Homeland. Agent Kort and Assistant Director Morrow are here to answer any questions that you may have as to what you will be doing for them. If you decide to take neither of their offers, then Director Morrow will be escorting you to the airport. Apparently, its written into your agreement that should you decide to turn down any employment offers, your citizenship would be immediately revoked, and you must leave the country as soon as possible. So, do you have any questions?”

“I will not work for an agency that actively works against my father,” Ziva spat angrily glaring at Kort, who just arched an eyebrow openly looking amused.

“Darling, you hurt my feelings,” Kort purred, “Director Marshall would love to have you… under him.”

“Not even if I were dead,” Ziva shot back readily, and Kort just blew her a kiss, which almost made Leon swallow his toothpick.

“Are you choosing Homeland then, or heading back to Israel?” Leon asked calmly, hoping that he was hiding his amusement well.

“I will not give up my life here to go back under my father’s thumb,” Ziva snapped, and Leon watched her eyeballing Morrow. When her lips curved upward, Vance knew that she’d reacted the way he planned. He was well aware that Eli David didn’t think much of Morrow and apparently had at some point passed his feelings onto his daughter.

“I will choose to offer Homeland my services,” Ziva murmured with her arrogance firmly back in place. “After all, I will not be gone long. Gibbs will not be pleased when he learns of your actions and will demand my return. His team needs my expertise.”

“Why in the hell would an investigative team need a spy and an assassin, Darling?” Kort queried, and Vance did a happy dance inside when he saw Ziva’s jaw tick with annoyance.

“I am much more than those things,” she insisted, but Kort just snorted. “Not really, my dear. You’re a killer and a thief of information. Neither of those things helps solve murders in any way. Frankly, as much as it pains me to say because I hate the bloody wanker, as long as they have DiNozzo they’ll continue to succeed. He’s the true secret to that team’s success, and everyone knows it, Love.”

“He is nothing but a man child and a clown,” Ziva snapped and flipped her hair over her shoulder as she smiled at Morrow. “I am looking forward to working with people who are much more professional and understand my worth.”

“I am sure that we can go far together,” she purred, and Vance almost swallowed his toothpick. Surely she wasn’t hitting on Tom Morrow. Good Jesus this was even more entertaining than he’d believed. When the older man gave her a faint smile and a nod, Leon almost gave up the game by laughing. When he saw the former Mossad Agent lean back in her chair in a way he imagined she thought seductive, he had to fight not to shake his head at her obliviousness of the situation.  “I look forward to our brief time together. Although, you must understand it will be brief.”

“Gibbs is the one who demanded you removed from his team,” Vance pointed out drawing her attention back to him. “He advised that you weren’t getting any better, and your investigative skills just weren’t up to par for what was expected for his team. So, given that he requested that you be moved off his team, I wouldn’t expect him to say anything but good luck.”

“You are telling tales,” she denied, and Vance just shrugged.

“I can’t control what you believe, Ziva. I can only tell you the truth as I know it. Gibbs no longer wants you on the team. I wanted to refocus the MCRT back onto domestic crimes, and away from terrorist activities that we were forced to assign them, so you could be useful. No one else in NCIS wants you on their team, so I contacted other agencies. You have now accepted Assistant Director Morrow’s offer of a position at Homeland.” Getting up, he headed to his desk where he picked up a folder that Legal put together and dropped off for him earlier.

“Sign the papers in here, and then Director Morrow will be escorting you out. I believe he wants to speak with you. NCIS thanks you for your time with us. Keep in mind that once you leave the Navy Yard, you will not be allowed back in without authorization. Your access to our systems is already being shut down. Please leave your badge on the desk. Gibbs has already gathered your weapon from your desk. Any personal items will be packed up for you and shipped over to Homeland tomorrow. Good luck, Ziva.”

“You will regret this,” Ziva spat as she stood and stomped to the door. “You will quickly find out my worth.” When she yanked on the door, and nearly dislocated her shoulder, Leon swallowed his laugh with a sip of water from the glass in front of him. Morrow was as stone-faced as always, but Kort made no bones about sharing his amusement.

“Security protocols, Darling,” he shared as he straightened. “Director Marshall will be most vexed, but I think things have worked out for the best.”

Leon stood and moved to his desk where he could unlock the room, and maybe hide his grin behind his monitor. When the trio left, with NCIS security following to ensure no hijinks happened, Leon let out a sigh of relief and hoped that Gibbs took McGee to a conference room on another floor. They were almost rid of her without any major incident and hoped there were no last-minute mishaps. Letting his head fall back to rest against the back of his chair, Leon took a deep breath and wondered if it was his imagination that everything just seemed lighter all of a sudden.


	3. Timothy McGee, this is Your Wake-Up Call

# Chapter Three: Timothy McGee, this is Your Wake-Up Call

 

 

Once Ziva was on her way up to the Director’s office, Gibbs locked his computer, and after picking up a file, he’d put together, stood looking over to McGee who was studying his monitor a little too intently to be working. “McGee! Stop gabbing with Abby and come on. Leave your damned phone at your desk.” Gibbs ordered as he moved around his desk and headed toward the stairway not waiting to see if the Junior Agent would follow. While McGee had come a long way since his stuttering days, he still didn’t really have the balls to stand up to Gibbs.

“We’re taking the stairs, Boss?” McGee asked, and the Team Leader just huffed.

“Nice observation, McGee. You’re really putting those degrees to work. Next thing you’re gonna tell me is that the night is dark and it’s light in the daytime.”

“S…sorry, Boss,” McGee stuttered, and Gibbs smirked hearing the younger man huffing already.

“Sorry only counts if you mean it, McGee,” Gibbs snapped as he stormed through the door to the fourth floor.

“I.. I thought the rule was never apologize,” McGee stammered again as Gibbs headed toward the conference room. He hoped that Ziva wouldn’t think to look for them there.

“It’s been pointed out to me that rule is stupid,” Gibbs said with a shrug as he headed into the conference room and took a seat so that he could see the door. “Shut the door behind you, McGee, and take a seat. We’re gonna have a little chat.”

“Boss?” The young agent asked, and Gibbs didn’t even bother to stop from growling.

“Jesus Christ, McGee! Sit the hell down! Are you completely unable to follow a damned order?”

“S… sorry… I mean… I…”

“Sit, BooBoo!” Gibbs ordered with a shout, and when Tim almost knocked the chair over he sat so fast, the Marine had to fight not to eye roll at him. Instead, he tossed the top folder at him and tapped on the cover.

“This is my file,” Gibbs advised then leaned back in his chair. “Tell me what my degrees are in.”

“Boss?” McGee echoed wide-eyed, and Gibbs growled at him.

“Am I not speaking English?”

“No, Boss. I mean, yes, Boss. I mean… looking for your degrees, Boss.” McGee said in a hurry, and Gibbs just gave a nod as he folded his arms across his chest.

“Boss? I don’t… I mean, it says exempt where your college information would be.”

“Huh, so I guess that means you think you’re better than me too?” Gibbs drawled lifting an eyebrow. “You’re smarter than me? You think you deserve my job too? I mean hell, you think you deserve Tony’s cause you assume your two computer degrees out weight his one from OSU. Since you think he’s a moron, I guess I’m damned lucky to know how to get out of bed and get dressed on my own.”

“Gibbs, no!” McGee practically screeched, and Gibbs tilted his head to one side. “I mean you don’t need a college degree! You know everything! I mean, your Gibbs.”

“I’m not fucking psychic, McGee,” Gibbs spat back as he leaned forward resting his forearms on the table. “So, then this intelligence thing is just what… a case by case basis? Doesn’t count for me, but counts for Tony? ‘Cause why? ‘Cause Ziva whispered in your hear and like a spineless lump you just went along? In your tiny little mind, Tony represents everything you think your bullies were? Why? ‘Cause he wanted to make sure you could stand up for yourself? You know the only reason you’re even on this damned team is because of Tony, right?”

“I don’t… Boss?” McGee half asked obviously surprised, and Gibbs snorted humorlessly.

“That’s right, McGee,” Gibbs repeated sharply, “he’s the one that convinced me to take a chance on you.”

“I didn’t wanna have a damned thing to do with you. You got on my nerves, but Tony said that he saw potential in you and asked me to give him a chance. My guess is that there are days when he really regrets that. If you ask me he should, you sure as shit don’t deserve the loyalty and the time he’s put into you over the years. Tell me, what’d you find when you researched Tony’s education?”

“It said that in addition to his degree in Phys. Ed. he has a Masters in Sociology, he’s working on an Abnormal Psychology degree, and has taken a bunch of continuing ed computer classes that NCIS offers. But, that doesn’t make sense! Tony’s not…”

“Tony’s not what, McGee?” Gibbs practically purred as he leaned forward further. “Not smart enough? You know what I think? I think you had a shit load of potential, and then you let a bunch of bullshit go to your head. If you ask me, you’re even less qualified for this team now than you were when you started. Tony takes at least one class every semester at Georgetown. When was the last time you did that? When was the last time you did anything but pat yourself on the back and tell everyone how great you were? If you haven’t figured it out yet, you're sure as hell not qualified to take his spot in any way, shape or fashion.”

“I don’t…” McGee started but stopped and frowned as he looked down at his hands. “I don’t understand, Boss. What happened that suddenly Ziva and I are the bad guys and Tony’s Mr. Perfect? Ziva said…”

“I don’t give a shit what Ziva said!” Gibbs shouted cutting him off angrily before pounding his fist to the table. “How the hell do you think you can be my SFA? Do you understand that means you have to be able to stand up to me when I’m being an ass and tell me? Hell, you can’t even stand up to Ziva and Abby! How the fuck are you gonna stand up to someone who really matters? You know how much shit you’re in McGee? Do you!”

McGee quickly shook his head wide-eyed but otherwise stayed quiet, and Gibbs was reasonably confident that it was because he couldn’t speak. “Right now, your little partner in crime is getting move out of NCIS. You know why, McGee? It’s because I’ve had it with her shit.

“She created the situation with Michael that resulted in his death by lying and holding back information multiple times. She gave Mossad NCIS information that was classified. Her attitude since she was rescued was abysmal. When the situation was brought to my attention, I took time to review things for myself. What I found was that if anything the problem was understated. If I’d known she’d set up the situation where she saved Ari to get into my good graces, I would never have bought into her act, to begin with. That’s on me. I should have listened to what my SFA was telling me at the time and the doubts he had about her. The bottom line is I got fed up. So, I told Vance that I wanted her off the MCRT, and he decided that she was more hassle than worth! You wanna guess why you didn’t get the ax, McGee?”

“Because Director Vance thinks I’m the future of NCIS,” McGee said, sounding confident for the first time, which only made Gibbs laugh as he shook his head.

“Jesus, McGee. Pull your damned head out of your ass. Vance was ready to transfer you out of the fucking Navy Yard! The only fucking reason why you got to keep your spot on the team is because once again, Tony went to bat for you. He thinks that if we separate you from fucking Ziva and limit your access to Abby that you can be turned around. Tony is of the opinion that you and Abby feed off each other negatively, and I agree. I wanted you gone, and Vance was ready to accommodate me by shipping you off to the Great Lakes office. News flash, you’re not any more special than the rest of us, and I can find someone to do your computer shit anywhere. The only person who thinks you can be saved is the guy you shit all over on a daily basis. Good job, McGee. Way to use that fuckin IQ of yours.”

Before McGee could speak, Gibbs tossed the other folder he’d brought with him to the Junior Agent. “I recommended Tony apply to NCIS and wanted him to join my team, but Morrow had to sign off on it. As soon as Tony was eligible to become Senior Field Agent, it was Morrow who promoted him. When he met with Tony, DiNozzo advised him that he’d only take the promotion if Tom would waive the fraternization rules if he and I began a relationship. When we got registered our Domestic Partnership, Tom’s wedding gift to us was a contract that stated no current or future director could force one of us out of NCIS or move one of us off of the MCRT because of our relationship. Rumor is that DC is about to legalize marriage between same-sex couples. If that happens, I guarantee you that we’ll be one of the first ones in line.  If you haven’t fucking figured it out yet, McGee, I have always picked Tony first and I always will for reasons that go well beyond the fact that he sleeps in my bed at night. You wanna stay on my team? You’re gonna have to prove you belong there.”

Gibbs stood and picked up the two folders that McGee was staring at. “Some changes are coming to the team. Tony’s moving up to a Co-Lead position. A new SFA will be picked, who will absolutely not be you. If you don’t get your crap together, you can and will be easily replaced. You have all these aspirations, but nothing you do qualifies you for any of them. To hell, if you wanna be a leader or a follower, you need to decide if you wanna be a field agent on my team or just another guy in some other department. You stay you will be expected to follow the chain of command, you’ll be expected to follow orders from Tony as well as me, and you’ll be expected to pull your own goddamned weight. Personally, I don’t know if you can do it. Fortunately for you, Tony does.”

With that, Gibbs strode out of the conference room, slamming the door behind him, leaving a very confused and conflicted McGee behind him. Honestly, though, Gibbs was done caring. The only person who he absolutely couldn’t work without was Tony. Everyone else was replaceable. In a choice between Tony and them, it would be Tony ever time, and never them.

 

~*~~*~ ~*~~*~ ~*~~*~

 

A little over an hour later, Tim was sitting at Abby’s kitchen table with carryout Mexican food spread out between them as he relayed his conversation with Gibbs to his friend.  From the look on her face, she was stuck between disbelief and anger. If he was honest, it was how he felt himself. He couldn’t believe that this was happening to him. He had busted his ass to get this far and had big plans for himself.

Now, they seemed to be all getting railroaded because Tony was sleeping his way to the top. For a brief second, he wondered if Vance would be the next notch in the SFA’s bedpost, but when the image popped into his head, he wrinkled his nose and quickly pictured Gillian Anderson naked to get rid of it. “Timmy, you should know better than try to trick Abby!” The goth growled pulling him from his musings, and he rolled his eyes when he realized that she’d settled on disbelief.

Not in the mood to placate her as he usually would, Tim shot her a scowl. “Oh, get over it! This isn’t about you! Ziva got fired! I’m gonna be stuck back with DiNozzo ordering me around all the time. You’re just pissed because obviously, you aren’t really Gibbs’ favorite!” Maybe the smug smirk that he threw at her was a little over the top, but he wasn’t in the mood to baby her when he had a crisis of his own.

“What’s wrong with Tony as boss? I mean obviously he’s no Gibbs, and clearly, he’ll still be a glorified Senior Field Agent. You’re just mad they’re not handing you the position that you refused to do the work on the first time and still aren’t qualified for. As to them being in a relationship, you must have misheard. My Silver Fox would never hold something back from me. Tony isn’t even close to being his type anyway. As for Ziva, I’ll just talk to Gibbs and get him to talk to that stupid Vance. Tony’s never gotten over the thing with Michael, and obviously, he’s throwing around his weight now that he’s getting this mythical promotion.”

Tim snorted before he finished chewing on the chip he’d shoved into his mouth. “Do you think about the things you say before they come out of your mouth? You’re supposed to be on my side. I thought we were friends. You start off defending Tony and the months that he acted like he was important and trashing how I acted when as I recall you were nothing more than a spoiled brat acting like you were the only person who Gibbs walked away from. You finish in some fantasy land where it’s Tony who hasn’t gotten over the Michael situation when it’s really Ziva with the issue.”

Shaking his head, Tim gathered together his trash and standing walked over to Abby’s trashcan dropping the empty Styrofoam containers into it. Walking back over he lingered at the head of the table as he pulled on his coat. If she wasn’t going to be sympathetic to his plight, then he wasn’t going to stick around.

“Just because you don’t want it to be true, Abby doesn’t mean that it isn’t. Here are the facts. Ziva is gone. I saw her escorted out by Tom Morrow. She stopped at her desk and took a couple personal pictures that were in plain sight. She didn’t even care that she was leaving because she said that Homeland was a much more suitable place for her talents. I went up to see Vance before leaving, and he confirmed not only the new team makeup but that Gibbs and Tony have a registered Domestic Partnership and have since just before Kate was hired. So, you’re obviously not the favorite, and that’s really what’s eating at you. You could give two shits about the rest of us, you only care that you aren’t in the top position. You might be like his daughter, but Tony’s as good as his husband. So, again, I say get over yourself.”

With that, Tim stormed out of the apartment leaving his ex-girlfriend behind to stew. He couldn’t care less about her hurt feelings at the moment. If she wasn’t going to be sympathetic toward what he was going through to hell with her. She really needed to grow up, anyway.

 


	4. A Little Tough Love Goes A Long Way

# Chapter Four: A Little Tough Love Goes A Long Way

 

 

Gibbs was finishing the dishes and talking to Tony, who was about to leave for work. He had only been able to get the bare bones of Balboa’s case, and he’d gotten a few ideas overnight that he was excited to check out once he got to work. Jethro was just finishing up the last coffee cup after Tony took the last swallow from his morning joe when the front door opened with a bang.

“Gibbs! Gibbs! Where are you? What the hell is this nonsense?”

Sighing, Gibbs hung his head for a moment, as his partner chuckled softly. Looking up, he saw his lover watching him obviously amused with one eyebrow arched. The night before the younger man bet him that they’d have an early morning visitor.

“There’s no way that McWhiney won’t run right to her to complain about how I manipulated you and destroyed his career. She’s gonna spend all night working herself up, and there’s no way that she won’t be here bright and early. I’ll be happy if we get to finish breakfast and our coffee before she storms in demanding justice.”

Gibbs was sure that the Goth would wait to talk to him in her lab at the Navy Yard, and as he hollered out to her that he was in the kitchen, Gibbs admitted to himself that he should have known better. Giving his life partner a half smile and a head tilt acknowledging he’d lost their bet, he leaned in and stole one last kiss before they started their workday.

“Gibbs! We need to talk, Mister. What… DiNozzo! What the hell do you think you’re doing?” The Team Leader heard screeched and pulled his head back just in time to see Abby’s closed fist swinging toward Tony. Just in time, Gibbs reached out and caught it, holding on firmly as his partner and new co-Team Leader jerked backward. When Abby tried to pull her hand back starting to complain, Jethro silenced her with a glare and a sharply ordered, “shut it!”

Turning his head to Tony to see how his partner was mostly resigned to their current situation and was surprised that he didn’t see more hurt in his lover’s eyes. Gibbs thought that it painted a dire picture of the state of Tony and Abby’s friendship, and doubted that the woman even noticed. “Have a good day, Tony. Can you let Vance know that I got delayed this morning? I doubt it will matter since I’m the only one that will be there this morning. Give me a call if you or Balboa need something. No reason I can’t back you up if needed. McGee’s helping Fornell with something.”

“Got it, LJ,” Tony said, and Gibbs caught a sparkle of mischief in his eyes before another quick kiss was stolen. “Love you, Babe. I will let you know if I’ll be home for dinner, but don’t count on it.”

Then, Gibbs watched Tony back away to where his suit jacket was hanging and left the room without even acknowledging Abby’s presence. Turning his head toward the younger woman, Gibbs gave her another angry glare and held onto her wrist until he heard the front door shut. “I don’t know what the hell you think you’re doing, Ms. Sciuto, but you are so far out of bounds, I doubt you even know where they are.”

When she opened her mouth to reply, once more he glared her into silence. “No! You intruded on where you weren’t invited or frankly, wanted. So, you can keep your yap shut until I give you permission to speak. In case you didn’t notice, I’m pretty damned unhappy with you. So, you can take yourself into the living room and sit your butt on the couch. When I’m ready to deal with you, I’ll be in.”

When Abby tried to give him a pout to get herself out of trouble, Gibbs just hardened his glare sending her off scurrying. Putting her out of his mind for the moment, Gibbs turned back to the sink and finished his chore washing the pan Tony had cooked the eggs in and then set about wiping off all the counters and the table. Once he’d wasted enough time and thought that his temper was settled, Jethro headed out into the living room. He really wanted to loom over her, but this wasn’t an interrogation, and as mad as he was at the moment he didn’t want to do something rash that would damage their relationship.

At the same time, his usual way of dealing with her wasn’t an option. Sitting beside her and cuddling her as she cried was not going to fix the mess that he’d created. While it was true that he did see her as a daughter, when Tony asked Gibbs if he would have let Kelly get away with some of the bullshit Jethro allowed Abby pull, Gibbs was forced to admit he wouldn’t have. While he adored his daughter, he would have tanned her butt if she pushed someone just because she was mad or didn’t like something they’d said. It was true that he wanted Abby to be able to defend herself if needed, he didn’t want violence to be used as a means of retribution when she was in one of her pouts.

Instead of sitting next to her on the couch, he moved to sit on the chair, which was at the opposite end from where she’d set down. When she went to move, he pointed a finger at her and threw another hard glare at her. “Tony said that McGee would run straight to you last night, and from your current temper tantrum, I can see that he was right.” Instead of continuing right away, Gibbs took a deep breath and looked up at the ceiling for a moment letting his anger ebb away. He didn’t like it, but he knew that the situation with Abby was his fault. Tony had been following his lead for years, while in private trying to tell him that Gibbs was creating a monster. He hated it when Tony was right, and it happened more than Jethro’s ego liked.

“I’m sorry, Abs, I’ve created this mess, and I in some ways it wasn’t fair to you,” Gibbs started, and barely held back a sigh at the look of triumph on her face. It was obvious that she thought that once again she was going to get her way. It made him sad because it really emphasized how far she’d fallen from the woman that she’d once been. “Some changes are being made, and I’m afraid you’re not going to like them very much, but I think they’re for the best.”

“Gibbs!” Abby inserted but fell silent quickly when Gibbs narrowed his eyes at her.

“I’ve come to realize that you’ve fallen into some bad habits. It seems like some of the best parts of your personality have nearly vanished, and some of the lesser attractive traits have taken over. You seem to think that everything revolves around you. You demand answers to questions that are none of your business. You’re quick to lash out verbally and physically when you don’t get your way. Hitting people, Abigail, is never called for, and the next time I see you do it, I will personally make sure there are consequences. None of us owe you any kind of information on our lives, no matter what kind of business or personal relationship we have. That little stunt in the kitchen a bit ago is exactly what I’m talking about.”

When her eyes misted over, Gibbs hardened himself from giving in knowing how often she used them to her own gain. “Those crocodile tears are part of what I’m talking about and aren’t going to work with me anymore. I realize that I have contributed to how spoiled you’ve become, and that’s why I’m the one having this talk with you. So, what is going to happen is that there are going to be some barriers put up between you and the team. There will be no more personal visits to the lab, and no more caf-pow for results. Only Tony or I or the new SFA will come for test results, and you will only be welcomed in the bullpen for case related necessities. In addition to this, I am recommending to Vance that your lab is moved back to the required standards. It seems to me that you and McGee are feeding off each other negatively. I can’t control whom you talk to in your off time, but I can manage who you have access to at work.

“Personally, there will be a lock put on the front door, and the only people with keys will be myself and Tony. I love you like you were my own, Abby, but Tony is and will always be the most important thing in my life. I never imagined that I’d have a second chance at love after I lost Shannon and Kelly, but he gives me that. The fact that you’re scowling right now at that tells me that I’m making the right decisions. I think you need therapy. I never thought I’d recommend it, but I’m going myself. Tony knows my therapist and made arrangements for the partner in her office to see you. That way it’s someone we know that we can trust, but it will be completely separate from my own therapy. I think you’re still a good person at heart, Abs, but right now you’re not acting like it. In fact, some days it’s hard to see any of the good bits of you.”

The tears were freely flowing down the younger woman’s face, and Gibbs’ heart clenched at the sight. “I know this is hard for you. If you want the day off, Vance is willing to give it to you. Since it’s obvious that McGee came to see you, I don’t need to tell you about Ziva. You can clearly see and talk to who you want, but as someone who cares about you, I would recommend that you limit your exposure to her. She’s not good for herself right now let alone anyone else. I think you need to take a day or two and spend it with your nuns. I hope you’re honest with them and really listen to what they have to say to you.  I love you, Abs, and I will miss you, but I don’t like the person you’ve become. I hope you take the opportunities presented to you to turn yourself back into a better person.”

Falling silent, Gibbs waited for Abby to speak, when instead she just stood up and ran out of the room, he let his head drop. The sound of the front door slamming made his shoulders tighten, but he reminded himself that his relationship with Tony was more important than anything.

 

~*~~*~ ~*~~*~ ~*~~*~

 

 

Tim had been in a conference room with two of Fornell’s agents. One of them, Agent Jonathan McDonald, he was familiar with, but the other one, Agent Danny James, he didn’t know. Jonathan was Ron Sack’s partner for years before Sacks moved on. Because of that, Tim felt comfortable with filling him in on everything that was going on with the team when the other man asked. He mostly didn’t pay attention to Agent James but assumed that she’d go along with his view on Tony. Evidentially, that hadn’t been the case.

“For the love of God, will you shut the hell up, and take some damned responsibility for your own actions?” Agent James snapped, and Tim knew that his jaw dropped open from the shock. When he turned to Agent McDonald for support though, he was even more shocked to see the man smirking at her, but making no effort to stick up for him.

“In case you weren’t paying attention, Special Agent McGee, I am the Second in Command on this team, and let me be frank. Had you been on my team, your ass would have been written up a long time ago if you talked that way to me.”

Tim scoffed at her writing her words off as not understanding how Gibbs runs things. “You just don’t understand Gibbs. Don’t act like you’re better than me. If the FBI were so great, you wouldn’t need me here to solve your case.”

“Solve our case?” Danny snapped flopping back in her chair and crossing her arms over her chest. “Are you kidding me? You haven’t found anything useful that we didn’t already have, and we didn’t ask you here. Gibbs called Fornell and asked for a favor to get you out of his hair for a few days. Everything you have come up with we already had and more. For a supposed computer genius, you’re not all that great. Let me give you a reality check.”

When the SIC leaned forward and rested her arms on the table, Tim forced himself not to flinch backward. “The Chain of Command shouldn’t be optional, and if your boss ever thought it was then, he’s a moron. You’re not any better than anyone else. This isn’t academia, and no one cares what your degrees are in. For that matter, you can find computer geniuses all over this country, and most of the ones here actively work at keeping their skills current either through classes or working with each other to learn the latest things. If you don’t qualify for a Senior position, then you don’t qualify. No one gives a shit about your ego or what you think you deserve.

“Ambition is great, but no one is going to hand you what you want. You actually need to work for it. People around here do talk about Special Agent DiNozzo, and I’ve yet to hear anything that isn’t positive outside of Sacks who is just generally sour grapes. You, on the other hand, I hear a bunch of bullshit about like you think the law doesn’t apply to you. Like for instance when you decide to hack into shit instead of taking the legal routes like getting warrants or requesting information. Fornell is about as computer illiterate as I hear Gibbs is, and when I explain to him why our computer tech can’t just “get” the information he gets it. Maybe you need to learn to use your balls and speak up when this guy demands information instead of folding like a bad cot.”

When the agent just snorted at him and leaned back again, Tim stayed frozen where he was not sure it was safe to move. “Frankly speaking, I think you’re a disgrace, and there is no way in hell I’d work for you, or that anyone in the FBI would want you. Agent DiNozzo though… Him they’d love to have. Including in a supervisory position. Now, I think it’s time you went back to NCIS. You’re not needed here.”

When he turned to look at McDonald the older man just rolled his eyes at him. “Don’t look at me to support you, McGee. I think you’re a moron. Sacks hated DiNozzo, but even he’d never support even a quarter of the bullshit you’ve been spewing. We don’t need you here, and my guess is NCIS doesn’t either. It sounds like you had an excellent opportunity, and let your head be swelled by someone with an agenda. Good job. Way to blow your shot. I doubt anyone outside of that team would want you right now. Scurry back to NCIS and beg DiNozzo for forgiveness. It sounds like he’s your last chance. Ironic, huh?”

An hour later, Gibbs looked up from the report that he was working on completing to see Tim standing in front of him looking more than a little uncertain. “Boss, can we talk?” Leaning back in his chair, Gibbs took off his reading glasses and looked at the younger man. Tilting his head to one side, he stood and lead the way to a conference room. Hopefully, this talk would go better than their last.


	5. All’s Well That Ends Well

# Epilogue: All’s Well That Ends Well

 

 

Gibbs was in the living room reading a book when he heard the front door open. Finishing his page, he marked his spot and looked up just in time to see his partner walk in. “Hey, how’s the case?”

“Coming along, Chris said we’d worked enough for the day,” Tony said coming over and stealing a kiss before settling on the arm of the chair. “He says he likes to keep reasonable hours because unlike you, he likes sleeping.”

Gibbs snorted as he tapped the book against his knee. “Had an interesting visitor at work. I don’t know what happened at the FBI, but McGee showed up with his tail between his legs. I think that’ll work out now. You’re gonna have to have an honest talk with him and air everything out, but I think you’re right in that he’ll come around. Abby, I don’t know about. Apparently, she showed up in the morgue telling Ducky she was quitting, but he managed to talk her around to taking a few days. So, we’ll see there. I’m not as upset about that as I imagined I’d be. Gonna have to think about it awhile though before I’m ready to discuss it more.”

Tony nodded and stole another kiss before standing. “There anything left for dinner? It smells like it was good.”

“Haven’t eaten yet. I was holding off to see if you’d come home. Got one of those chicken, broccoli, and cheesy rice casseroles in the oven on warm. If you wanna go change, I’ll get the table set. I have everything made. Got some things I wanna talk to you about.”

Once the two of them were set down, Gibbs cleared his throat drawing Tony’s attention after they’d been eating for a few minutes in silence. “I’ve come to a decision, and I want your thoughts. I gotta question first. Have you found someone to sublet the apartment yet?”

“Nope,” Tony admitted before taking a sip of milk before continuing, “I haven’t actually put it up for rent yet.”

“My old real estate agent retired, and I don’t have one at the moment I trust. I need to ask around and get a name, why?”

“I was thinking if you don’t mind, that you hold off on that for the moment. What if we move in there for awhile? You’ll have to get a new bed because we both can’t sleep on that horrible twin thing you have. Then, what if we renovated the house? I umm… I might have seen the sketch pad that you’ve been drawing out ideas for this place on. I’d like to talk to you about some of them and tweak some things. Maybe we can add an in-law suite onto the back of the house for my dad or Ducky. I think though that we need to make this place ours and less mine and Shannon’s.”

“Leroy,” Tony breathed, and Gibbs smiled softly at him. Generally, at home, his partner called him LJ except for special moments like now. What had started out as something of a tease had become something intimate between them. When the younger man reached out and took his hand, Gibbs lifted it and kissed the back of it making his lover smile.

“That includes redecorating by the way, which I will leave to you. I just ask that you leave the basement alone. I do wanna add a better TV down there and a couch. I was thinking we could move the one we have now up here down, so you have a better place to sit, and I figured that neither of us will mind getting it dirty.”

Tony was silent for a moment, and the way his eyes got sparkly from the emption told Gibbs it wasn’t a bad thing. When his partner spoke, it was quieter, and his voice was huskier than usual. “I love you so fucking much. Do you know that? The most scared I’ve ever been was down in the basement when I wasn’t sure what you’d say. I was scared to death that you’d tell me to fuck off and throw me out. I have no doubt it would kill me. Rumor has it that DC is about to legalize gay marriage. If they do, would you be willing to do it one last time? Would you marry me, Leroy? Would you become Mr. DiNozzo-Gibbs?”

Getting up, Gibbs cupped the sides of Tony’s face, and before their lips touched, he paused to look in his lover’s green eyes. “I would be honored to become Mr. DiNozzo-Gibbs.” Then he touched his lips to Tony’s and lost himself in the moment.

Later as he was laying in bed, with Tony in his arms, and his nose buried in the back of his fiance’s neck, he realized that for the first time since Shannon it felt right. Opening his eyes, he looked toward the window and startled for a moment seeing something standing there. Lifting his head, he blinked rapidly at the vision in front of him. He wanted to believe that it was just a sleep induced hallucination that had Shannon hovering outside the second story window. Before he could react though, she blew him a kiss and faded away.

“LJ?” Came sleepily from the man in his arms. “S’wrong?”

“Nothin, babe,” Gibbs said slowly lowering his head to rest on the pillow. “Nothing at all. Everything is perfect.”

And, as he let himself fall to sleep, he realized it was. Somehow, he knew that whatever happened was Shannon’s way of giving her blessing and that he wouldn’t see her again. For the first time though, that didn’t hurt as much as it usually did. He’d come close to losing everything but knew that he’d made the right choice. He’d always choose Tony, and never them.

 

The End!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have a vague idea for a sequel. Seriously, though, I make no promises and like this one it probably won't come any time soon. I have July RT and NANO in November as well as two upcoming Bangs I want to participate in and several stories from Evil Author Day I still want to complete. 
> 
> So, maybe possibly eventually, but who knows. I think this ends in a good place though. So, if the third story doesn't happen I'm ok with it.


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